Slump takes its toll on architecture industry

With building stagnant, many firms have downsized

The single-family residential and small commercial "sectors have been very seriously hit," says Carl Elefante, president of the American Institute of Architects' Potomac Valley chapter.

Some professions, such as computer systems and scientific research, have actually added jobs in Maryland in the past year during the recession.

But not architecture, as state job losses in the field have been greater than the overall private-sector average, according to the latest state and federal figures.

As construction projects, especially residential and commercial, have dried up, architectural companies in suburban Maryland are really feeling the pinch, said Carl Elefante, president of the American Institute of Architects' Potomac Valley chapter. Most members of that chapter are small firms in Montgomery and Prince George's counties, with some in Frederick, Garrett, Washington and Allegany.

"Their client base is single-family residential or small commercial," said Elefante, a principal with the Washington, D.C., architectural firm of Quinn Evans and a resident of Takoma Park. "Those sectors have been very seriously hit."

The job base among Maryland architectural and engineering companies has declined by almost 6 percent in the past year, according to the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation and U.S. Department of Labor.

The average decline in private-sector jobs in Maryland in the past year is about 4 percent.

SK&I Architectural Design Group of Bethesda is working on competing in the institutional and public-sector markets, which have not been as affected by the recession as most other markets, said Sami Kirkdil, president of SK&I. Much of the decade-old company's work has been in the private sector, such as at the Park Potomac and Spinnaker Bay master-planned communities in Potomac and Baltimore, respectively.

"Our industry has suffered greatly," Kirkdil said. "At least some of the federal stimulus money is supposed to trickle down to governmental projects. … A lot of architectural firms are going after that work."

SK&I recently hired as a principal Jon Wallenmeyer, formerly vice president of development in Forest City Enterprises' Washington, D.C., office. He is leading SK&I's effort to compete in the institutional-public sector markets and said he hopes his experience as a developer will bring a new perspective that will bear fruit.

"Opportunities are there for firms like SK&I" that have great experience in meeting government green building standards under the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards, said Wallenmeyer, who has headed national award-wining projects in Washington, Richmond, Va., Philadelphia and other cities. "Sustainability is the driving force behind the stimulus package."

But even the federal stimulus funds and projects such as the Pentagon's base realignment program will "take time to work their way through the system," Elefante said. Still, Maryland is better off than many states, because of its proximity to many federal government agencies, he said.

Like most architectural firms, SK&I has a leaner workforce these days, with about 22 employees compared with 38 a year ago, Kirkdil said. Attrition has been used more than layoffs to downsize, he said.

Most architectural firms in the region have not just reduced staff but are cutting overtime, Elefante said.

"Some have closed down entirely," he said.

Fortress International Group, a Columbia company that designs and builds data centers, call centers, laboratories and other facilities, cut its workforce by 13 percent, or 23 employees, last year, according to its most recent annual report.